docking day

[Doc Vernon]

Agree with that Ivan, however although they did coin it , there was also the other side of the Story, in that we as the Givers were also the Takers of a lot of contraband through the Gates, making us all a wee bit richer with various things taken through Duty Free. Mainly of course were the Smokes! I recall on my very first trip with that Lad i mentioned that lived in Putney, together we took out some 6 Cartons of Smokes, and quite a few other Items we had Purchased on the way to the UK.
So as they said "One Bad turn deserved another " LOL

[Gerald Farr]

#10 Hi Ivan, Yes I forgot about the five bob at the gate, the Taxi drivers knew all about it though so it could have been fifty/fifty for them on the way back out. You reminded me because when my wife and I were driving back to the ship in KG5 after going to the cinema the driver pulled up short of the gate and said it will cost you five bob to get the young lady past the copper. I said why? I've been married to her for four and a half years. He mumbled something about being sorry and not realising, drove up to the gate, said something to the copper and drove us back to the ship and he didn't get a tip, not even be good to your Mother.

[Des Jenkins]

Ivan,
when I paid off in Tilbury after my first trip I had to cough up the half Crown for the copper, that amounted to half a weeks rent for my Mother. They would never go down in my book as good coppers.
Des

[Ivan Cloherty]

Agree with that Ivan, however although they did coin it , there was also the other side of the Story, in that we as the Givers were also the Takers of a lot of contraband through the Gates, making us all a wee bit richer with various things taken through Duty Free. Mainly of course were the Smokes! I recall on my very first trip with that Lad i mentioned that lived in Putney, together we took out some 6 Cartons of Smokes, and quite a few other Items we had Purchased on the way to the UK.
So as they said "One Bad turn deserved another " LOL

They were still barstewards Doc, robbing 16/17 year old kids. I only ever took my allowance, as infringing Customs rules could get your indentures cancelled and mum had sacrificed too much for me to let her down. I wasn't a smoker, but she always got my ciggie allowance, being the only treat I could afford in those days. As apprentices we were not entitled to a bottle, but some C/Stewards would mark it down as a case of lemonade in our bar tab, for some strange reason we were told to break the seal and pour the neck down the sink (or drink it) as Customs were less likely to confiscate it. in fact all our beers were marked as lemonades in the bar book as we were not officially allowed alcohol under company and indenture rules, even in our final year.

[j.sabourn]

It did cross my mind Ivan to jump ship in NZ with the cabin boy who I went to school with. However I talked him and myself out of it , the main reason was my father would have had to pay the bond of thirty pounds on my head , and also on the head of every other apprentice with the same inclination by their own trustees or their own fathers . I knew my old man could not afford 30 quid , would have been surprised if he ever saw so much at the same time. JS
A short story about the cabin boy who died at a young age , his name was Jimmy Marshall , he married one of the girls who lived across the road from my parents council house , his Aunt had a boarding house in Whitley Bay and Jimmy Shand with the band used to come to the Empress Ballroom every year to perform and always stayed with jimmy’s aunt which of course caused gossip. Jimmy after marriage went ashore and managed to go into business and owned one of the trip boats on Lake Windermere. This would have been in the early sixties so someone may have known him. longer odds have been known to occur. JS

[j.sabourn]

#14 Everyone else apart from seamen themselves made a good living from a seaman’s efforts the hangers on being the shipowner himself, the port health authoritys , the customs and excise, the pilotage system, the mooring gangs, and right down to the ships chandlers, and to add insult to injury you had people like lady Aster who proposed that seamen should wear a black armband to advertise that they maybe carrying a social disease, and as regards food rationing said 1 tin of condensed milk should last 1 man 1 month. She was an American so what she was doing in a British Parliament I could never understand, the same as today as so many aliens making their own rules to suit. Maybe the politician has to cater to them as needs their votes at the ballot box. JS

[happy daze john in oz]

Docking day in Southampton, great day for customs and policer on the gate.

Many of the lads would attempt to bring in more than their allowance of grog and smokes.
Hide them away in the hope the customs would not visit their cabin.

But so many sad stories of grog and smokes being confiscated.
And where did it go, of course the customs guys loved a drop of grog and the occasional smoke no doubt.

The off to the dock gate to be 'encouraged' by the guy on the dock to make his day easy, that was code for if you do not give me a ten bob note i will make life very bad for you.

They must have earned half a years salary on docking day at that rate.

[Gerald Farr]

#14 Funny old World back then wasn't it Ivan? No alcohol allowed while you were an Apprentice, no matter your age whilst Indentured. But to cover the problem of not being able to get a Pool Third Mate to cover a Christmas voyage, I as an Apprentice late in his third year was transferred to one of our other ships at very short notice, chasing across the UK to join it as Third Mate. For five and a half weeks or so I was allowed to drink whatever I liked ( I was very careful to keep it sensible} but when I returned to my next ship back as an Apprentice it was no alcohol again. Such was life, but I don't regret any of it, those were the rules.

[j.sabourn]

I can’t see any restrictions on my indentures as to drinking . Apart from being sober at all times , mind the ones I signed were a British Federation Form. Anyhow we used to get our tots if wanted on Saturday night IF over 18.
However if you were off sick by accident or design for 6 months the shipowner would cancel your Indentures . Other clauses were pay rates of 390 pounds for the 4 years with 5 pounds bonus if you made it. Again within a year this was slightly upped by a small amount , plus the bonus went up to 30 pounds. Cheers JS
The federation form was C.4c oh aye and 12/- a year washing money. Never found out if that was for washing yourself or your clothes. Varied if loaded or in ballast, loaded water was rationed and in ballast was usually out of the ballast tank with a distinct salty savour. JS

[Gerald Farr]

Left it too long to edit into to my previous post but wasn't it Lady Astor who addressed a meeting of M N Officers starting her speech with:- Gentlemen of the Merchant Navy and Officers of the P & O whereupon most of those present got up and walked out? Am too young to remember it personally but was told the story when I was about 18/20 by an old timer (who was younger than I am now).